March 8, 2012

	Chef Batali Agrees to $5.25 Million Server Tip Suit Accord
	Pastry chefs lobby for more representation in the James Beard Awards
	Celebrating 40th Year, Cousins Subs Revamps the Brand
	NY Restaurant Letter Grading System Gets Big Fat "F" From Restaurateurs, City Council
	Norovirus blamed for sickening 95 at NY restaurant
	Restaurant serves up opportunity for deaf
	Oakland Food Truck Vendors Unite to Fight Crime
	Compass Group will end contracts with pork producers that use gestation crates
	Beef - er, pink slime - it’s what’s for school lunch. And I’m okay with it.
	Public Cafeterias To Solve America’s Food Problems? (opinion)
	Kindergartener Saves Choking Friend’s Life In School Cafeteria
	School lunch programs in Illinois are part of federal anti-fraud effort

Welcome New Members!
	Michael Wasylko, Spencerport, NY Joined on: Mar 8, 2012 Occupation: Director

	Tara Mintz, Banner Elk, NC Joined on: Mar 8, 2012 Occupation: Owner / Operator

	Adam Mugridge, Joined on: Mar 8, 2012 Occupation: Manager

	Kaye Thibodeaux, Youngsville, LA Joined on: Mar 8, 2012 Occupation: Manager - Assistant

	Ajmal Rahim Ttp, Joined on: Mar 8, 2012 Occupation: Sales, DSR

	Edward Hauser, Frisco, TX Joined on: Mar 8, 2012 Occupation: VP - Purchasing

	David Degaeta, FPO, AP Joined on: Mar 7, 2012 Occupation: Chef - Executive

	Jewel Mcnaughton Power, Brooklyn, NY Joined on: Mar 7, 2012 Occupation: Caterer

	Cameron Swaim, Garden Grove, CA Joined on: Mar 7, 2012 Occupation: Server / Waitstaff

	Nancy Nava, Compton, CA Joined on: Mar 7, 2012 Occupation: Manager

Daily Market Update
Beef Commentary Report

Boxed beef cutout values were firm on light demand and offerings. The modest appreciation in the cutout was primarily from rib and loin cuts this session with both Choice and Select displaying solid gains in these areas. By contrast end meat prices stalled throughout the week as buyer resistance to high prices intensified. This was most apparent on Thursday’s close with a volume of cut items below a hundred loads. Forward sales were also slow with the one notable exception of Choice top...

Details and Chart

Food Cost Management: Use Less Beef and More Horsetail

Gaining an advantage from commodity market price management can lead to a profit boost for a limited time but does not address the long-term effects of food inflation and higher beef costs.

One way to get the most from a little beef is by using “horsetail”. Now this can be thoroughbred Angus, Arabian, Paint or even Appaloosa no-roll, just as long as you purchase chemically lean tail from a certified U.S.D.A. packer. If you are looking for a low food cost percentage, serving “horse” is a marvelous way to make money from a little beef.

The Meat Buyers Guide does not yet recognize horsetail as real beef, although there is a strong lobby group lead by “Chefs Cooking for Profit”, based in Baltimore, MD pushing for this recognition. They claim that any casual or fine dining restaurant can achieve a 26.5% food cost using the “horsetail” menu.

Purchasing consultants are always looking for new cost reduction methods, but this “horsetail” jargon has really thrown me a curveball, so I sought the council of friend and Master Chef working at the Palmetto in New York City. I said to Chef Mykal Gruber, “ It doesn’t sound very appetizing Chef, what’s up?”

Chef Mykal explained when he served horsetail, he was talking about the tasty foods that accompany meat entrees, and that this was a pre-90’s CIA term for reducing the amount of meat needed per serving. Then he gave me some examples: the rice pilaf served with stir fry beef, the celery-onion stuffing mounded under thin slices of roast beef for a roast beef diner; the slices of bread and the scoop of mashed potatoes and all that good, rich gravy poured over everything (this bogglers personal favorite, the All-American, hot roast beef sandwich)

Our firm has several client chains upgrading steak and burger toppings and developing special sides to utilize this “plate-filler” concept. Now that your humble blogger has learned a new cost-management tactic, I realize there are horsetails everywhere!

Not only will these high-quality fillers increase interest in your menu, but they will lower your food cost substantially. In fact, it you offer top quality sides, customers may never miss the absence of larger portions. Once you start thinking “horsetail”, you can cut beef portion size and plated cost. You can also help keep your purchasing executives bonus in place, as he won’t have to buy as much $2.35 lb., 80/20 ground beef or high-price beef cuts.

How to make a lot of money from a little beef and “horsetail”:

Armed with this cost-cutting concept, I approached a successful casual dining chain near Santa Anita, CA to test this menu engineering theory: that less beef is more profitable. I agreed with...

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